This invention relates to optical fiber cables, and more particularly to a connector for the joining of the optical fiber filaments of a bundle of fibers carried by one cable to the fibers carried by another cable or may be joined to a related component, such as a repeater, by simple splicing means for protection against the elements such as weather conditions or against conditions such as are encountered by underwater cables.
There are a large number of connectors known for joining optical fiber cables together, but in most cases, they are composed of complex arrangements of many individual elements, each element or assembly of elements usually performing only a single function.
Other types of connectors are constructed in such a manner that the elements connected to one cable are not interchangeable with the elements connected to the other cable so that care must be taken to select the proper subassembly to be attached to each cable termination.
In other cases, specially designed splicing devices are required for the joining of individual optical fiber filaments which must be used with the particular mechanism provided for anchoring the two cables carrying the respective bundles of fibers.
The foregoing characteristics are particularly evident in known connectors of the type designed for underwater use where a liquid is contained within the connector space where the filaments are spliced and compensating means is provided for equalizing the pressure within the inner space with pressure of the liquid surrounding the connector.
Examples of known connectors are disclosed in the following U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,192,569; 4,172,212; 3,742,427; 3,571,783 and 3,508,188.